Nong Plays Alone

This photo of Nong (five years old) was taken in his hometown of Plong sub-district, Thoeng district, Chiang Rai province on Dec 7, 2009 at a community event near the Thai-Laos border. After both his parents died from AIDS, Nong, who is also living with HIV/AIDS, moved in with his grandfather. A few months before this photo was taken, a meeting was held concerning Nong entering kindergarten. Parents were afraid Nong would bite children and infect them with AIDS. The mayor intervened and allowed Nong to enter school, but he was shunned by teachers and students alike and was rarely seen playing with others. Nong inspired my community health station and I to put on educational workshops and public media letting people know about the dangers and myths about contracting HIV/AIDS.